From Electronic Structure to Catalytic Function: Rare Earth-Driven Strategies for CO₂ Electroreduction

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electrochemistry
• Catalysis

Background:

• Electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction (CO2RR) offers a path to mitigate emissions and produce valuable chemicals.
• Traditional transition-metal catalysts face challenges in selectivity, overpotentials, and durability.
• Rare-earth elements present unique properties for advanced CO2RR catalyst development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review recent advancements in rare-earth-based electrocatalysts for CO2RR.
• To highlight how rare-earth elements address limitations of conventional catalysts.
• To outline future research directions for efficient CO2 conversion.

Main Methods:

• Review of rare-earth-based single-atom catalysts (SACs), alloys, and oxides.
• Analysis of strategies including atomic dispersion, synergistic effects, and oxygen vacancies.
• Examination of catalyst performance in activity, selectivity, and durability.

Main Results:

• Rare-earth SACs modulate electronic structures and suppress hydrogen evolution.
• Rare-earth alloys exhibit synergistic effects, enhancing selectivity for desired products.
• Rare-earth oxides and mixed phases activate CO2 and improve catalyst stability.

Conclusions:

• Rare-earth-based catalysts significantly improve CO2RR activity, selectivity, and durability.
• Challenges include atomic dispersion stability, conductivity, and multi-carbon product selectivity.
• Future work should emphasize rational design, operando characterization, and machine learning for CO2 conversion.